The story
A slight misunderstanding of the taxonomic name Osedax mucofloris, which actually means "snot-flower bone-eater", with mucofloris modifying Osedax rather than the other way around.
Etymology from Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.
bone-eating snot flower worm
Today it means: A worm-like creature, Osedax mucofloris, that feeds on the carcasses of minke whales in the North Sea. Full definition →